Business developments celebrated

There are a lot of things happening at Okanagan Eco Park, by definition.

“The word entrepreneur in French means to make things happen, ” said Michael Molnar, CEO of Restoration Lands Inc., addressing the room on Tuesday night. “Hats off to all of you for what you do to enhance our community.”

Molnar began Tuesday’s Business After 5 event by thanking the business owners and community members who made the trip to Coldstream to see and hear about the advancements being made at the Okanagan Eco Park.

“There’s been a lot of buzz in the community about Restoration Lands since we bought it a year and a half ago,” said Molnar. “When this was a glass facility we lost 350 jobs from the community and that had a huge impact on the community, and we felt as entrepreneurs and business people that we needed to take some responsibility for that and try to make things happen.”

Okanagan Eco Park is an industrial/commercial subdivision. Located just outside Vernon (in Coldstream), sits the reconstructed, 450,000 square ft. facility. These advancements include a 7.5-acre roof, renovated office and approximately 1,000 LED light fixtures. The goal is to provide economic benefits to all partners involved while providing positive environmental impact and creating sustainable jobs.

“We’re very fortunate to be in the stewardship of 54 per cent of the zoned industrial land of the region,” Molnar continued. “We have 92 acres of industrial land here and what we will be doing is creating the Okanagan Eco Park.”

Molnar continually related the project back to family — equating Restoration Lands Inc., his own family business, back to the Vernon community. He says they hope to give back by having a positive impact on the Okanagan and its residents.

“Our goal as a family is to restore the jobs times three. We want to see 1,000 jobs created throughout this whole industrial park,” said Molnar, addressing the crowd. “Each and every one of you who we’ve talked to and a lot of your businesses will really fit in.”

Molnar noted that there would be a press release coming within a few weeks regarding a national tenant. The Morning Star will provide updates as they become available.